Banbury Constituency Labour Party

Labour MP Michael Meacher MP agrees with Ha-Joon Chang that “the country is in desperate need of a counter narrative” to the Tory story on the economy

Michael Meacher MP, guest speaker at Banbury CLP Supper Club

First, Labour did not leave behind an economic mess; the bankers did.

Second, the Tories have claimed that the reason for enforced austerity is to pay down the deficit. Yet, after six years of falling wages, private investment flat, productivity on the floor, and fast-rising trade deficits, the deficit is £100bn, when Osborne promised in 2010 it would now be next to zero.

Third, Osborne’s so-called recovery is bogus because it is too dependent on a housing asset bubble, too dependent on financial services rather than manufacturing, and has no demand to sustain it. It is already fading as growth slows.

Fourth, the only way now to get the deficit down is by public investment to kick-start sustainable growth via house building, upgrading infrastructure, and greening the economy.